The situation
Effective July 1, 2018, the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Policy in Poland designated approximately 200 job titles as shortage occupations, which means employers filing a Work Permit, Single Permit or EU Blue Card application for locally-hired foreign workers in these titles are now exempt from conducting a labor market test.
A closer look
The list includes many occupations in industries such as information technology, healthcare and transportation.
Impact for employers
Affected employers may see that their Work Permit, Single Permit or EU Blue Card application process is 21 days faster, the amount of time that an advertisement must run in a publication for occupations for which employers must search for local qualified staff.
Employers with applications pending as of July 1, 2018 can apply the exemption if their foreign worker’s occupation is on the list.
Impact for foreign nationals
Affected foreign nationals should similarly benefit from faster processing and should face less uncertainty on whether their position would be filled by a local worker.
Background
Host employers of locally-hired non-EU nationals seeking to file initial Work Permit, Single Permit or EU Blue Card applications in Poland, and those filing change of position applications, must submit a vacancy notification to the regional Labour Office in Poland. The Labour Office will conduct a labor market test for 21 days to determine whether there is a local worker who can fill the position.
Several exemptions to the labor market test already existed before July, including for some information technology workers and intracompany transfers.
Looking ahead
Polish authorities are separately working on creating a Single Permit for Shortage Occupations, which has further benefits including expedited qualification for permanent residence. Further updates are expected in the coming months.
This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].
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